Tuoi Tre News

Traffic jams still haunted travelers on major routes connecting Vietnam’s Mekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday and were intensified by multiple road accidents. A large number of people were still traveling back to Ho Chi Minh City from their hometowns in the Mekong Delta following the end of the Lunar New Year holiday, placing enormous pressure on National Highway 1. In Vinh Long Province, two traffic crashes occurring in the afternoon severely exacerbated the gridlock on the highway as well as its detour in the locality. Despite efforts from traffic police officers, vehicles were stuck in heavy congestion along a 10 kilometer section of the road. Traffic police deal with a road crash. Photo: Tuoi Tre As of 6:00 pm on the same day, thousands of motorbikes and automobiles were still traveling at a snail’s pace in the area. Aside from the two routes, the section of National Highway 57 near Dinh Khao Ferry Station in Long Ho District, Vinh Long, also … [Read more...] about ​Road accidents worsen congestion in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta

Hundreds of locals in a small commune of north-central Nghe An Province have been gathering around a ditch over the past few days to watch a fish with “strange” behaviors they believe to possess divine powers. The aquatic animal started catching attention on February 16, when it was found surfacing by a local who happened to pass by a ditch in Hien Son Commune, in Nghe An’s Do Luong District. Attempts to catch the fish were unsuccessful even with the use of electrofishing equipment, giving rise to rumors that the animal must be a divine being trapped inside the body of a fish. Since then, the curious animal has drawn a crowd of hundreds who gather around its habitat to watch it resurfacing and sinking numerous times in a day. Many even offered fruits, sweets and incense to the “holy fish” to wish for a successful year. Hundreds gather around a ditch in Hien Son Commune, Do Luong District, Nghe An Province in north-central Vietnam to watch a … [Read more...] about ​‘Holy’ fish draws hundreds in north-central Vietnam

Unlike numerous countrymen, Vietnamese returnees from Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia are living a good life at a banana farm in the Mekong Delta province of Long An. Around five generations of ‘overseas Vietnamese’ have been settling in floating homes along Tonle Sap, the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, where they have eked out a living as fishermen. However, once a prime breeding ground, fish have become exhausted in Tonle Sap in recent years, discouraging the migrant fishermen from continuing their lives on the lake. Over the past 10 years, the emigrants have been returning to Vietnam in increasing numbers, setting up temporary homes along canals and rivers near the border. Most have nothing but a boat and their fishing nets. Long An Province hosts the most returnees, with over 1,700 individuals in 424 households, according to a 2013 count. Over the past year, hundreds of these overseas Vietnamese have put down roots at the Food Huy Long An banana farm, owned by … [Read more...] about Returnees from Cambodia’s Tonle Sap thrive in Vietnam

All flights to the north-central Vietnamese city of Vinh have been redirected while other flights departing from this locality have been canceled due to foggy weather. About 16 incoming and outgoing flights at Vinh International Airport, located in the namesake city in Nghe An Province, had to be diverted or called off on Monday night because of bad weather conditions, Hoang Van Thu, director of the airdrome, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper. Fog started to form at around 8:40 pm, limiting visibility, Thu said, adding that the weather remained unfavorable as of early Tuesday morning. Six flights bound for Vinh City were forced to land in Hanoi and the central city of Da Nang. Some 10 other flights operated by Vietnam Airlines, Jetstar Pacific, and Vietjet Air, which were scheduled to leave the city during the period, had to be canceled. The weather conditions improved at 9:00 am on Tuesday, allowing aircraft to resume their operations. New flights were provided to passengers within the … [Read more...] about ​Flights diverted, canceled due to foggy weather in north-central Vietnamese city

Read what is in the news today, the sixth day of the Year of the Dog! Society -- A long holiday break coupled with favorable weather during Tet, or the Lunar New Year holiday, led to a surge in tourism demand in Vietnam on the first days of the new lunar year, filling popular attractions nationwide with both domestic and foreign travelers. -- The administration of Bac Lieu Province in southern Vietnam has announced its plan to publish official translations into English, French and Chinese of the famous 20th-century song ‘Da co hoai lang’ (The midnight drum reminds me of you), which defined a new style of melody to the Vietnamese ‘cai luong’ (reformed) folk opera. -- Swedish automaker Volvo has proposed investing in opening three new bus routes in Ho Chi Minh City that will be operated by a fleet of high-quality buses manufactured by the company, following a meeting with the municipal Department of Transport. -- A cold spell is forecast to hit … [Read more...] about ​Breakfast @ Tuoi Tre News – February 21

The village is located by the Ca Be River in Tien Giang, a province in the Mekong Delta of southwestern Vietnam. Roads leading up to the village are surrounded with green trees and growing fruits. Every house has a front porch with a newly blossomed apricot tree waiting for the Lunar New Year, also known as Tet holidays, one of the biggest celebrations every year in Vietnam. Roads leading to the village are surrounded by trees. Photo: Tuoi Tre Apricot blossoms are the most common houseplants on display during this period of time as it is widely believed that the flourishing of the plant indicates a household’s prosperity in the upcoming year. The river is covered in shadows of the big red-leafed Idian almond trees, commonly found in the area, while the banks of the river are covered with golden trumpet flowers. In other ancient villages in Vietnam such as Duong Lam Village in Hanoi or Phuoc Tich Village in Hue City, the old houses usually lie next to each other. An … [Read more...] about Dong Hoa Hiep ancient village in the spring

BANGKOK -- A Thai court on Tuesday said it ruled in favor of a wealthy Japanese man who had fathered 13 surrogate children in Thailand, naming him their legal parent and sole guardian. The case harks back to late 2014, when police said they had found 13 babies fathered by a Japanese national with nine Thai surrogate mothers. The children were taken to foster homes and the father has petitioned for custody since early 2015. The man had his sperm fertilize donor eggs, which were then planted in the wombs of the surrogate mothers in 2013, according to a press statement given by the court. No details were given on where the donor eggs were from. The scandal at the time shone an international spotlight on Thailand’s largely unregulated surrogacy business, prompting authorities to crack down on clinics with nationwide inspections and later to ban commercial surrogacy. The Japanese man was given custody of the 13 children on Tuesday largely due to his financial and professional … [Read more...] about Thai court grants custody to Japanese father of 13 surrogate children

A foreign passenger, who was supposed to get on a flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Myanmar, somehow ended up on an aircraft en route to Singapore on Tuesday morning. The incident happened on the flight VN 651 operated by national carrier Vietnam Airlines, which was scheduled to leave Tan Son Nhat International Airport for Singapore at 9:10 am on Tuesday. According to a source close to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, who was also a passenger on the flight, the plane was about to take off when the cabin crew was informed that a passenger had got on the wrong aircraft. “At 9:05 am, a flight attendant announced that the departure would be delayed,” the source stated. A foreign man then exited the plane along with his backpack and suitcase. Several stewardesses were tasked with making sure none of his belongings were left on the aircraft. An employee of Vietnam Airlines escorted the passenger back to the airport terminal after his entire luggage was collected. … [Read more...] about Foreign passenger boards wrong flight at Ho Chi Minh City airport despite checks

I’ve spent the past 5 years living a nomadic lifestyle, wandering from one destination to another in my 6 favourite countries in Southeast Asia. For this past Western holiday month of December, I visited my beloved Borneo, a part of Malaysia which is a rich tapestry of many indigenous groups and religions who bond together to celebrate each group’s big holidays including Christmas. One of the most interesting aspects of my lifestyle is that I never get in a rut or bored in any one place, getting a fresh new perspective with each trip. Usually I’ll spend a month or two in one spot, although my trips to Vietnam have become longer as I fall in love with it more each passing year. Moving from one destination to another presents no culture shock feeling because I’ve been doing it so long, so each time I arrive at one of my destinations it’s more like a homecoming. But this past time, after only 5 short weeks, I was blown away by many things when I came back to … [Read more...] about Even a short absence is revealing in Vietnam